COLLEGE PARK, Md. (WUSA) -- The most decorated athlete in Olympic history is among those calling foul over a proposal to cut 8 varsity sports at the University of Maryland, including men's and women's swimming and diving.
Michael Phelps is using Twitter to weigh in saying: "Please help spread the word #savemarylandswimming."
Phelps is joined by a number of other Olympic athletes including track and field world record holder Tyson Gay and distance runner Lolo Jones who have used social media to advocate for athletic programs on the chopping block.
Men's track and field is among the sports proposed for elimination, even though coach Andrew Valmon is slated to lead the US Track and Field Team and the 2012 Olympics in London.
"It's embarrassing," complains former Maryland hurdler Dontae Bugg. "Maryland wants to be a top tier athletics department and now were saying we haven't balanced our budget correctly and now we have to start slicing sports."
A committee advising University of Maryland president Wallace D. Loh has recommended cutting programs to save as much as $5 million, and provide better support to the surviving varsity teams.
Maryland's athletic department reported a $7.8 million dollar loss last year, in part because football and basketball programs are struggling to produce healthy revenue.
Bugg is among alums who question why the University paid $2 million to sever ties with former football coach Ralph Friedgen shortly after he was named the Atlantic Coast Conference football coach of the year. The team under new coach Randy Edsall has posted only two wins this season, further eroding fan support.
Loh is expected to make a final decision on cuts by the end of the year.